BEST FILM

FESTIVAL DES
LIBERTS 2016

FIDH awards its prize to

SONITA
by Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami
When Iranian film director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami first met 16-year old Afghan migrant, Sonita Alizadeh, in a
Teheran shelter, neither would have imagined the encounter to be life-changing. The film documents Sonitas amazing
story over a period of three years. Sonita lives an impoverished childhood in Tehran, but she finds her voice through
music and dreams of becoming a famous rapper. She starts writing her own songs and dreaming big, despite the fact
that women face crippling challenges to perform in Iran, let alone rap. When her family try and sell her into marriage,
Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami ends up becoming personally involved, paying her mother $2000 to buy Sonita some
precious time. She films Sonitas powerful and moving rap video "Brides for sale" which garners a lot of international
attention and in particular that of the non-profit Strongheart Group. They offer her a scholarship to study in the US.
Sonita continues to pursue her dreams on all fronts. To the 28 girls who will be forced to marry in the next 60
seconds, please know that I am working to bring about big change. Please have hope. When a young girl is forced to
marry, she loses so many important things: she loses her childhood, her family and her hope. She cant see or feel any
support. She feels entirely alone. I know this because that could have been me. And many of my friends became child
brides. Child brides are touched and forced to do things that they don't want to do. This is a kind of abuse. Thankfully, I
found a way out. Now I am free. I have the right to make my own decisions and build my own future. Right now, the
three most important things in my life are school, my music and working to end child marriage. I hope that all of these
things will continue far into my future.
Through this award, FIDH wishes to highlight Sonitas incredible journey, her work as an ardent campaigner against
child marriage, and Iranian film director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami, who made much more than a documentary.

The jury :
Catherine Absalom
Elena Crespi
Gaelle Dusepulchre
Ingvild Jenssen
Julie Majerczak
Vincent Metten

The film :
FIDH
FIDH
FIDH
NGO Shipbreaking Platform
Reporters Without Borders
International Campaign for Tibet

Sonita
Sonitas video Brides for sale
FIDH www.fidh.org
The Festival des Liberts http://www.festivaldeslibertes.be